dz5bxm
06-03-2012, 08:36 PM
So I did my first DA job on my Saab Turbo X over this past week. I just saved this car from a stealership and found out how bad the paint really was after two washes.
Accordingly to the CarFax the car originated from NJ/NYC area and spent the last four years of it's life in that area. Everything on the car is dry to the touch, the paint, the plastics, the leather. I don't know if this was due to the salt water area or pure neglect. I swear the stealership just put polish & armor-all everywhere. The exterior rubber and trim was all grayed and had a chalky white haze on it. Top panels had tons of water spots on them. After the third wash it became apparent that every panel had a very, very fine vertical or horizontal scratches on them - as if someone tried some paint correction prior on the car by wet sanding or something.
Anyway - this was my first true exterior detail with a DA. After doing some initial reading here I knew some serious paint correction would need to be done but did not want to try it on my first job with a DA. So my plan was to do a good job of getting everything "moist" again and get the paint protected for the summer. If some of the fine scratches and water spots were taken down a bit then it was a added bonus.
So this is what I did - (Note: I used a lot of Chemical Guys products because of a recent sale they had and I have not heard anything negative here on their products.)
For the paint:
DA was your standard Porter Cable 7424XP w/ 6.5" disc
1st with a LC White pad - CG Nano 3N Polish
2nd with a LC Blue pad - CG Wet-Mirror Finish Gloss Magnifier Glaze
3rd - Applied a coat of BLACKFIRE Crystal Seal - and waited at least a hour per what I read here.
4th with a LC Red pad - Applied a coat of Collinite 845 for durability.
5th - (This is where I believe I screwed up - because I didn't wait) Applied a coat of CG Butter Wet Wax by hand with a microfiber pad for a attempt at added depth. I believe this was probably a mistake because while I was applying it, it was like trying to spread cold butter on bread. The wax/pad wanted to pull out of my hand while attempting to apply. Because I'm a stubborn pollack I carried on and finished the car anyway. I will note the "feel" of the paint finish was softer and sleeker than with just the Collinite by itself when I did a side-by-side.
I wish I had some before pictures to do a side by side but I will say that it looks 100 times better. Unfortunately it has been raining in Buffalo for the last three days and will be for the next four. Because this is my DD I will not get to enjoy a dry day with the clean car.
Here are some pics inside and out. Note that under the fluorescent and at the right angle you can still really see the spotting and scratches that need to be taken out. Outside - it looks perfect. Sorry for the poor pics - but something is better than nothing....
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6838_2.JPG
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6836_2.jpg
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6837_2.jpg
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6801_2.JPG
Here you can still see the help needed....
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6803_spots.JPG
A quicky on how everything else was treated:
Hard & Soft Trim:
1st tried CG Black On Black V2 in a can. Did fine on anything not very discolored which was disappointing. Ended Up using on tires and hard plastic in grille area.
2nd - Had some Mothers Back-To-Black that I originally bought for my old CTS but never used, so I tried that on the discolored trim. To be honest it did pretty good. Had to apply a lot and really work it in but the end result was good. It really took a bit of time to soak in -1st coat was 30 minutes, 2nd coat was 4 hours before wiping it down! Took a bit of elbow grease to get off the paint and remove the excess from the trim pieces but it does look good. From what I read here - I fully expect it to be disappointing in a few washes.
Glass:
1st step - Griot's Garage Glass Polish by hand with foam pad.
2nd step - sealed with BLACKFIRE Crystal Seal.
Head/Tail-lights:
1st - Meguiars PlastX (from a headlight restore kit I had for the ole CTS)
2ns Step - sealed with BLACKFIRE Crystal Seal.
Rims:
CG Wheel Guard Wheel Wax
Next will be to move on to the interior. The leather really needs some moisture before it encounters too much summer sun.
So please offer some advice and critique - I'm here to learn, not get emotional.
Also what should I wash with and use as a quick spray detail - any suggestions?? .
Thanks for reading,
Jon:dblthumb2:
Accordingly to the CarFax the car originated from NJ/NYC area and spent the last four years of it's life in that area. Everything on the car is dry to the touch, the paint, the plastics, the leather. I don't know if this was due to the salt water area or pure neglect. I swear the stealership just put polish & armor-all everywhere. The exterior rubber and trim was all grayed and had a chalky white haze on it. Top panels had tons of water spots on them. After the third wash it became apparent that every panel had a very, very fine vertical or horizontal scratches on them - as if someone tried some paint correction prior on the car by wet sanding or something.
Anyway - this was my first true exterior detail with a DA. After doing some initial reading here I knew some serious paint correction would need to be done but did not want to try it on my first job with a DA. So my plan was to do a good job of getting everything "moist" again and get the paint protected for the summer. If some of the fine scratches and water spots were taken down a bit then it was a added bonus.
So this is what I did - (Note: I used a lot of Chemical Guys products because of a recent sale they had and I have not heard anything negative here on their products.)
For the paint:
DA was your standard Porter Cable 7424XP w/ 6.5" disc
1st with a LC White pad - CG Nano 3N Polish
2nd with a LC Blue pad - CG Wet-Mirror Finish Gloss Magnifier Glaze
3rd - Applied a coat of BLACKFIRE Crystal Seal - and waited at least a hour per what I read here.
4th with a LC Red pad - Applied a coat of Collinite 845 for durability.
5th - (This is where I believe I screwed up - because I didn't wait) Applied a coat of CG Butter Wet Wax by hand with a microfiber pad for a attempt at added depth. I believe this was probably a mistake because while I was applying it, it was like trying to spread cold butter on bread. The wax/pad wanted to pull out of my hand while attempting to apply. Because I'm a stubborn pollack I carried on and finished the car anyway. I will note the "feel" of the paint finish was softer and sleeker than with just the Collinite by itself when I did a side-by-side.
I wish I had some before pictures to do a side by side but I will say that it looks 100 times better. Unfortunately it has been raining in Buffalo for the last three days and will be for the next four. Because this is my DD I will not get to enjoy a dry day with the clean car.
Here are some pics inside and out. Note that under the fluorescent and at the right angle you can still really see the spotting and scratches that need to be taken out. Outside - it looks perfect. Sorry for the poor pics - but something is better than nothing....
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6838_2.JPG
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6836_2.jpg
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6837_2.jpg
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6801_2.JPG
Here you can still see the help needed....
http://www.autogeekonline.net/gallery/data/1471/medium/IMG_6803_spots.JPG
A quicky on how everything else was treated:
Hard & Soft Trim:
1st tried CG Black On Black V2 in a can. Did fine on anything not very discolored which was disappointing. Ended Up using on tires and hard plastic in grille area.
2nd - Had some Mothers Back-To-Black that I originally bought for my old CTS but never used, so I tried that on the discolored trim. To be honest it did pretty good. Had to apply a lot and really work it in but the end result was good. It really took a bit of time to soak in -1st coat was 30 minutes, 2nd coat was 4 hours before wiping it down! Took a bit of elbow grease to get off the paint and remove the excess from the trim pieces but it does look good. From what I read here - I fully expect it to be disappointing in a few washes.
Glass:
1st step - Griot's Garage Glass Polish by hand with foam pad.
2nd step - sealed with BLACKFIRE Crystal Seal.
Head/Tail-lights:
1st - Meguiars PlastX (from a headlight restore kit I had for the ole CTS)
2ns Step - sealed with BLACKFIRE Crystal Seal.
Rims:
CG Wheel Guard Wheel Wax
Next will be to move on to the interior. The leather really needs some moisture before it encounters too much summer sun.
So please offer some advice and critique - I'm here to learn, not get emotional.
Also what should I wash with and use as a quick spray detail - any suggestions?? .
Thanks for reading,
Jon:dblthumb2: